The latest State of Food Insecurity and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) report finds that if current trends continue, the world will not achieve its goal to end hunger by 2030. Urbanization, along with the climate crisis and political instability, are major forces shaping food insecurity.
Jointly produced the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the UN. Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), the SOFI report is one of the most comprehensive global reports on hunger and malnutrition.
The latest findings reveal that while hunger rates remained relatively stable from 2021 to 2022, 122 million more people are hungry today than before COVID-19 pandemic. Worldwide, between 691-783 million people do not have enough to eat and more than 3 billion cannot afford a healthy diet.
“This year’s SOFI report confirms that global progress at ending hunger has stalled at unacceptably high levels,” says Alvaro Lario, President of IFAD.
While the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals set a target to eradicate hunger in the next seven years, the world is not on track to meet this goal. Estimates show that almost 600 million people will still be chronically undernourished by 2030 without significant change.
“We are coming close to sink or swim time,” says Csaba Körösi, President of the 77th Session of the U.N. General Assembly.
In Western Asia, the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa, food insecurity continued to worsen. But the report also shows progress in some parts of the world, primarily in most subregions of Asia and Latin America.
Maximo Torero, Chief Economist for the FAO, the promising news shows that policies and programs aimed at ending hunger in these regions have been effective and “we need to learn from them.”
The SOFI report also highlights the effect of rising rates of urbanization on food and agriculture systems. Today, roughly 50 percent of the world lives in cities, and by 2050 that number may be as high as 70, according to the U.N.
“We must ensure food systems are fit for the future. That means adapting to the reality of the ballooning urban populations,” says U.N. Secretary General António Guterres.
Urbanization, the authors note, is driving a change in consumer behavior, with diets shifting “beyond traditional grains into dairy, fish, meat, vegetables, and fruits.” The trend is also contributing to the spread and consumption of processed and highly processed foods, which are “increasingly cheaper and more readily available.”
Torero argues that actions, policies, new technologies, and investments that address the challenges and seize the opportunities created by urbanization requires a clear understanding of the relationship between agrifood system and the “rural-urban continuum.”
And while rates of hunger remain higher in rural areas, the issue is one “we need to explore and understand better to ensure we can reach vulnerable urban communities in the years ahead,” states Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the World Food Programme.
And U.N. heads argue that interventions must come quickly, with McCain stating, “This year’s SOFI report shows we have no time to lose.”
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